Chutzpah

Today, it’s just me pointing to some good stuff in other people’s writing, blogs and tweets. Firstly, there is the extraordinary sight of people responsible for the financial melt-down of 2008 denying they had a part in it, and saying that state intervention (which saved their respective asses) is not a good thing. Here’s Paul Krugman open mouthed at the chutzpa of Alan Greenspan, revered in the days of light-touch and deregulation as a financial genius, but now revealed as the worst ex-central banker in the world. And then there is George Monbiot gasping at a new book by Matt Ridley, who was the chairman of Northern Rock when it became all but insolvent, who begged the government for help, now saying that the state is a flea sucking the life out of the economy. Oh, and adding some climate change skepticism to enrich the mixture. Jeez.

And for those of you expressing your own amazement at the behaviour of utility companies, an article telling of the historic struggle to take the control of water – a “dangerous monopoly” – out of the hands of greedy capitalists. Amongst those engaged in this campaign were leading Conservatives of the day